Take My Breathe Away

C18: Kneed

"Let go of me!" Finally, Debbie was able to speak.        
   

With a sneer, Carlos stopped what he was doing and pressed his head against hers. "You are too young to be doing this. Are you this desperate for money? How much is one night?"    

Money was the least of his problems. Even if he stopped working at that very moment, he would still have enough money to spend for the next 300 years.    

For a moment, fire spewed out of her eyes. Clenching her fists tightly, she took deep breaths to refrain from losing control. She forced a smile. It was a faint one, and in an instant, it was gone. With her disheveled hair and her ragged breathing, Carlos found it enticingly beautiful.    

"100 million," she said through gritted teeth. The light in his eyes grew colder. "Are you kidding me? You?"    

Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he would have to spend a dime, let alone a million, just to sleep with the woman he so despised.    

Ironically, some time later, when the time came that he did want to sleep with her, she would not even so much as spare him a glance. He just did not know that yet. He was, possibly for the first time, caught in such an odd dilemma.    

Debbie smiled wanly. "Mr. Huo, hear me out," she said.    

But he shook his head once. "I'm done with talking. Let me see if you're worth it," he countered. Whatever it was that she wanted to say, Carlos already knew that it was not worth hearing. Thus, he was not stupid enough to let another word escape her mouth.    

'Damn!' Debbie cursed internally. 'You evil man!'    

Trying to maintain her smile, Debbie wrapped her arms around his neck. In the dark, their bodies appeared to fit perfectly like a puzzle as she pulled his body close to hers. The air in the room was so tempting. For a moment, Carlos seemed to be consumed with lust again. With her lips dangerously closing the gap between them, Debbie had him right where she wanted. Suddenly, she lifted a leg and kneed him in the groin.    

Groaning, Carlos closed his eyes in pain and bent down on the floor beside her.    

This time, the glint of happiness in Debbie's eyes was genuine. 'Did you really want to take advantage of me? Hah! Not going to happen, ' she thought. "Mr. Huo," she remarked, "I was trying to tell you that, even if you were to give me a hundred million..." She paused, and then flashed a scornful look. "...I would not sleep with you." Debbie fixed her wet dress casually. Then, she looked down at the man, and said, "See ya."    

When she turned to leave, however, Carlos grabbed her by the arm, his pale face filled with pain. With a raised eyebrow, she shoved his hand away, opened the door, and disappeared from his sight.    

At the moment, the lady with a smug face might feel great about what she had just done. But in the future, if and when she would meet Carlos again, she might as well escape as fast as she could. Why? Because he was not going to forgive her without a payback.    

Not far from the room, Curtis, Colleen, and Jared were biding their time with some security guards. If Debbie had stayed inside any longer, Curtis would have had to break in to get her. Fortunately, just as he was about to make a move, the lady in question emerged from the room.    

"Debbie!" Curtis called.    

"Tomboy," Jared said, relieved. He advanced towards her, and pulled her into his arms. "Thank God, you came out. We were going to break the door open!" Then, it dawned on him. He examined her carefully, and asked, "Did Carlos hurt you?"